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House Crakehall
House Crakehall is one of the primary noble houses from the Westerlands. Their seat, Crakehall, is located along the Ocean Road, at the south of the Westerlands, between the Sunset Sea and a large forest. The Crakehalls are known for their uncommon robustness. Their arms depict a black and white brindled boar on brown. Their words are "None so Fierce". History The Crakehalls are a house of First Men origin who claim descent from Crake the Boarkiller from the Age of Heroes. After defeating King Hagon Hoare, Ser Aubrey Crakehall briefly ruled as King of the Iron Islands before being drowned by the Shrike. One of the outstanding supporters of Daemon Blackfyre mentioned by Ser Eustace Osgrey was Redtusk, who could have been a Crakehall. Ser Roland Crakehall was one of the three members of the Kingsguard that escorted part of the royal family to Ashford. He and his sworn brothers took part in the trial of seven on the side of Prince Aerion. Roland was one of the three Kingsguard knights who lead the loyalist forces to thwart the Second Blackfyre Rebellion. Along with Merrett Frey, Jaime squired for Lord Sumner Crakehall against the Kingswood Brotherhood. Ser Elys Westerling and Lord Roland Crakehall were the first to enter the throne room of the Red Keep after Jaime slew King Aerys II. Recent History Year 300: Tybolt Crakehall, Grandson of Sumner Crakehall, became lord of Crakehall, inheriting the seat from his late father, Roland Crakehall, who died in battle during the War of the three Stags. Though Lord Tybolt lived to see the second Targaryen rebellion, he was far from the young man he once was by that time, leading to the epithet “Greyboar” and his only son and heir Danos speaking for him in most instances decades before his reign ended despite his long life. The cunning Danos sought and fostered as many seemingly strong relationships as he could with those close to power, securing a Lefford girl to marry his eldest son and spending a lot of time in Casterly Rock while men in his employ carried out his instructions to keep his father’s lands running as he liked. Year 336: When the second Targaryen rebellion first broke out, Danos kept keenly to the side of Lord Gerion. The ambitious lordling had little love for the Lord Paramount, believing him rash and prone to anger, as well as resenting the raises in taxes that hit his house hard. He advised Gerion not to raise men of the West to fight a war he could avoid. He did, however, make it clear to his lord that should he make the decision to send men anyway, House Crakehall would lend their swords with full confidence, hoping the show of strength would affirm his position at court and show his loyalty. When that very call was made, Danos himself rode out with the heavy cavalry of Crakehall to make up a large proportion of the men who rode with Gerion’s brother, Lucion. Their force was ambushed by Targaryen troops, resulting in heavy losses for the Crakehall men within Lannister forces, with Danos receiving several wounds as the Targaryen men targeted the leaders with their archers. While Danos survived, the wounds he sustained in the ambush were said to have greatly shortened his lifespan. Year 345: The Greyboar finally breathed his last after many, many years in power, however Danos “the ambitious boar” was unable to enjoy his new position for very long, his old war wounds paining him so much in the years leading up to his death that those outside the castle barely saw his face as he spent most of them bedridden. Year 350: With the death of Danos, his son Andar succeeds him, known as the “blonde boar” for his flowing yellow hair. The long term plans of his father, condemning Gerion in favour of Damon and Damion, along with their financially failing lands, were dropped into his lap almost as soon as he sat his new seat for the first time. While Andar had not the same liking or talent for intrigue as his father, there was little he could do to change the course of the plan already in motion, and it was clear that following his co-conspirators was what was best for his house and many others alongside it. What’s more, in the weeks and months following Gerion’s poisoning and the successful coup Andar quickly found himself looking up to Damion, the successor Lord Paramount, as a strong ruler, pledging and then sending each of his sons in turn as they came of age to squire for House Lannister. Year 375: Being devout followers of the faith of the seven, Andar, his sons, and the rest of House Crakehall declare swiftly in favour of the High Septon and denounce the insulting mockery of the man calling himself the Smith at the advent of the Great Schism. At the news of Damion setting free prisoners of the Westerlands to be inducted into the Faith Militant, the blonde boar does two things; Firstly, he requested the return of his eldest son, Roland, from Casterly Rock, for him to discuss the possibility of war, leaving his second son Lewyn at the Rock and his youngest, Aron, in Castamere, the younger two not yet being old enough to be drafted for command. Secondly, he released his own prisoners in accordance with the actions of his Lord Paramount, however he encouraged any of the rabble taking up arms to support the High Septon’s cause to travel to the Rock and join other such converts there, preferring to keep his men as regimented and trustworthy as possible at the cost of the sizeable boost to his immediate forces. Year 376: Damion called forth the banners along the border between the Reach and the Westerlands, granting them funding and permission to push into Reach territory, Crakehall’s armies among them, Led by the brother of Lord Andar, Ser Jaremy Crakehall, known as the steel boar, and his eldest son Roland. Their orders allowed them to raze and loot whatever they come across, but strictly instructed them to kill only the men they came across. Any Crakehall man found guilty of killing women or children was put to the sword, though thankfully very few did, likely due to such a harsh and immediate ruling from the outset. It is also known that Lewyn Crakehall was part of the host sent south as a squire, though he was not among the Crakehall host itself. While the men on the front with the Reach did not receive word of Damion’s death until their return, the then Lord Crakehall who had been managing the affairs of his lands and supply lines received the news of his death rather promptly. The blonde boar was said to have wept at the news and rode to the Rock to pay his respects in person as soon as he was made aware. Year 377: The Crakehall host, combined with others from the Southern border, were eventually led by Lyonel to Red Lake, where they met the Tyrell force defending the Crane lands, led by the young lord Loras Tyrell himself. The Crakehall heavy cavalry made up the bulk of the right flank led by Loreon and Lyman, Lyonel’s cousins. For the Crakehall commanders, it was the first time in this war, and in any war for the young Roland, that they had cut their teeth on a real battle against an equal, perhaps even stronger foe. Their cavalry charge opened the flank of the Tyrell host right up to the centre of command, prompting the Lannisters with them to charge for Loras while the men behind them became embroiled in the ensuing chaos. The brazen move of the Lannister men led to them being crushed and Loras personally cutting down many of their knights, Loreon and Lyman included. At the sight of this, Lyonel flew into a rage and made a beeline for Loras, Westerland and Reach men alike looking on as the Lannister lord struck down the Tyrell. The battle was far from won, however, as the extensive Lannister losses brought about by the failed charge coupled with the newfound rage of the Tyrell army saw the battle become a stalemate, and the stalemate become a hasty retreat for the Westerlands host. Roland, the heir to Crakehall, came home both hardened and humbled, learning well the ways of war from his uncle’s counsel and their loss at Red Lake. Year 380: While House Crakehall did attend the wedding of Lyonel and Amarei, two notable guests who refused their personal invitations were Lord Andar and his brother Jaremy. While Andar complained of illness preventing him from travelling, many West lords saw it as a protest against the idea of the joining of houses Lannister and Tyrell. As such, Roland was the first to hear the news that came with it, that Beron Baratheon would be warded at the Rock. The heir and his family remained there for some time, with Roland keen to use his ties as a boy to the Lannisters to be a prominent part of their court on behalf of his house. Year 388: Not long before Beron left the Rock for his tour of the Free cities, Roland was also called away rather abruptly by a raven from his uncle. He and his family arrived home, along with each of his brothers and sisters who’d received similar summons, to learn of his father’s death, and that he was to be the new lord of Crakehall. Year 390: With the Third Targaryen Rebellion throwing yet another dark curtain over the realm, tensions quickly boiled up in the West, leading to what was known as the Torn Council, arguing back and forth long before it came time for the Westerlands to decide where it would stand in the war. Several southern lords along the border with the Reach argued that now was once again to strike a revenge blow against the Tyrells for their actions in and after the Great Schism. While Roland was at first inclined to agree, the memories of the battle of Red Lake well etched into his mind and his opinions on the Reach’s poential to stab them in the back, he was reminded of how the Crown looked kindly on Lyonel and rewarded him for his actions to repair the damage between the nations. While he remained wary of the Reach, he was swayed away from the side of another war on the South border, and the decision was eventually reached for the West to begin marshalling its troops, but to hold them at their borders until it was certain they would be needed. As the Targaryen forces pressed westward, lord Roland moved out with a small contingent of men for the Golden Tooth. His mother having originally been a Lefford, he and his men, which included his brother Lewyn, pledged themselves to the gathered defense forces of Lefford and Royce at the Tooth. Meanwhile, he gave the rest of his force, which mainly consisted of mounted knights not suited to the defence, orders to split into smaller bands and convoys to shore up supply lines throughout the Westerlands. The Crakehalls at the Tooth were but a small part of the force that held back Aelyx’s army for three arduous months, but one man who stood out among them was Lewyn Crakehall. Despite being only a boy at the time he first saw war, and his actions there going largely unrecorded, the brother of lord Roland was a force to be reckoned with among the soldiers defending the Tooth, smashing down swathes of Aelyx’s men with his hammer every time they attempted an advance. It was not until what the men of the North called the Thawing of the Frostborn that Aelyx’s armies were routed and pried away from the Tooth by the combined rebel forces from the North, Riverlands and Vale that those who had defended it received news of how the other regions had fared against Maekar, before joining in part with the Riverlands men to chase Aelyx to his last stand at Maidenpool, where Alyn Baratheon resolves the situation somewhat peacefully, breaking Aelyx’s spirit by slinging his ultimatum over the walls attached to Maekar’s corpse, with the war ending and Roland returning home not long after. Year 396: The Crakehalls attend the festivities at the Lannisport Tourney, Roland and Lewyn both making a capable showing in the joust and melee. Rumours circulated that Lyonel’s son, Tygett, who won the day in both of the main events, had the melee and joust rigged in his favour. Both men were convinced that this was far from the case, having competed and therefore knowing there had been no cheating they could detect When a Reach knight voiced such concerns, Lewyn took it personally and broke the man’s nose before Roland was able to stop him from doing further damage. Location House Crakehall sits in Crakehall, a keep in the southwestern westerlands. It is located on the Searoad along the Sunset Sea, south of Lannisport and north of Old Oak. Cornfield and Red Lake are east of Crakehall. There is a large forest in the vicinity of the castle. Previous Lords *Sumner Crakehall (265-281 AC) *Roland Crakehall (281-300 AC) *Tybolt Crakehall (300-345 AC) *Danos Crakehall (345-350 AC) *Andar Crakehall (350-388 AC) *Roland Crakehall (388 AC-present) Family Tree Notable Members * Crake the Boarkiller, the legendary founder of House Crakehall. * Ser Aubrey Crakehall, briefly a King of the Iron Islands. * Ser Clarent Crakehall, slain during the Battle by the Lakeshore. * Ser Roland Crakehall was a knight of the Kingsguard during the reigns of Daeron II and Aerys I. Category:House Crakehall Category:Houses Category:Houses from the Westerlands